www.TechnicalBooksPdf.com AutoCAD ® 18th Edition by Bill Fane www.TechnicalBooksPdf.com AutoCAD® For Dummies®, 18th Edition Published by: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774, www.wiley.com Copyright © 2019 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey Published simultaneously in Canada No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without the prior written permission of the Publisher Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, (201) 748-6011, fax (201) 748-6008, or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions Trademarks: Wiley, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, Dummies.com, Making Everything Easier, and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc and may not be used without written permission AutoCAD is a registered trademark of Autodesk, Inc All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners John Wiley & Sons, Inc is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book LIMIT OF LIABILITY/DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY: THE PUBLISHER AND THE AUTHOR MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS WORK AND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION WARRANTIES OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. 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FURTHER, READERS SHOULD BE AWARE THAT INTERNET WEBSITES LISTED IN THIS WORK MAY HAVE CHANGED OR DISAPPEARED BETWEEN WHEN THIS WORK WAS WRITTEN AND WHEN IT IS READ For general information on our other products and services, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S at 877-762-2974, outside the U.S at 317-572-3993, or fax 317-572-4002 For technical support, please visit https://hub.wiley.com/community/support/dummies Wiley publishes in a variety of print and electronic formats and by print-on-demand Some material included with standard print versions of this book may not be included in e-books or in print-on-demand If this book refers to media such as a CD or DVD that is not included in the version you purchased, you may download this material at http://booksupport.wiley.com For more information about Wiley products, visit www.wiley.com Library of Congress Control Number: 2019940397 ISBN 978-1-119-58008-9 (pbk); ISBN 978-1-119-58010-2 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-119-58011-9 (ebk) Manufactured in the United States of America 10 www.TechnicalBooksPdf.com Contents at a Glance Introduction Part 1: Getting Started with AutoCAD CHAPTER 1: CHAPTER 2: CHAPTER 3: CHAPTER 4: CHAPTER 5: Introducing AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT The Grand Tour of AutoCAD 17 A Lap around the CAD Track 37 Setup for Success 61 A Zoom with a View 83 Part 2: Let There Be Lines 93 Along the Straight and Narrow 95 CHAPTER 7: Dangerous Curves Ahead 109 CHAPTER 8: Preciseliness Is Next to CADliness 123 CHAPTER 9: Manage Your Properties 141 CHAPTER 10: Grabbing Onto Object Selection 163 CHAPTER 11: Edit for Credit 175 CHAPTER 12: Planning for Paper 207 CHAPTER 6: Part 3: If Drawings Could Talk CHAPTER 13: Text 219 with Character 221 New Dimensions 253 CHAPTER 14: Entering CHAPTER 15: Down CHAPTER 16: The the Hatch! 281 Plot Thickens 295 Part 4: Advancing with AutoCAD 323 CHAPTER 17: The ABCs of Blocks 325 CHAPTER 18: Everything from Arrays to Xrefs 343 CHAPTER 19: Call the Parametrics! 377 CHAPTER 20: Drawing on the Internet 403 Part 5: On a 3D Spree CHAPTER 21: It’s a 3D World After All Drawings to Models CHAPTER 23: It’s Showtime! CHAPTER 24: AutoCAD Plays Well with Others CHAPTER 22: From www.TechnicalBooksPdf.com 415 417 439 461 481 Part 6: The Part of Tens 493 CHAPTER 25: Ten AutoCAD Resources 495 CHAPTER 26: Ten System Variables to Make Your AutoCAD Life Easier 499 CHAPTER 27: Ten AutoCAD Secrets 505 Index www.TechnicalBooksPdf.com 509 Table of Contents INTRODUCTION About This Book Foolish Assumptions Conventions Used in This Book Using the command line Using aliases Icons Used in This Book Beyond the Book Where to Go from Here PART 1: GETTING STARTED WITH AUTOCAD CHAPTER 1: Introducing AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT Launching AutoCAD Drawing in AutoCAD Understanding Pixels and Vectors The Cartesian Coordinate System CHAPTER 2: The Grand Tour of AutoCAD 17 Looking at AutoCAD’s Drawing Screen For your information Making choices from the Application menu Unraveling the Ribbon Getting with the Program Looking for Mr Status Bar Using Dynamic Input Let your fingers the talking: The command line The key(board) to AutoCAD success Keeping tabs on palettes Down the main stretch: The drawing area Fun with F1 CHAPTER 3: 10 11 14 15 18 21 22 24 27 28 28 29 30 34 34 35 A Lap around the CAD Track 37 A Simple Setup Drawing a (Base) Plate Taking a Closer Look with Zoom and Pan Modifying to Make It Merrier Crossing your hatches Now that’s a stretch Table of Contents www.TechnicalBooksPdf.com 38 43 51 52 53 54 v Following the Plot 57 Plotting the drawing 57 Today’s layer forecast: Freezing 60 CHAPTER 4: Setup for Success 61 A Setup Roadmap Choosing your units Weighing up your scales Thinking about paper Defending your border A Template for Success Making the Most of Model Space Setting your units Making the drawing area snap-py (and grid-dy) Setting linetype, text, and dimension scales Entering drawing properties Making Templates Your Own CHAPTER 5: 62 62 65 68 68 69 71 72 73 75 76 77 A Zoom with a View 83 Zooming and Panning with Glass and Hand The wheel deal Navigating a drawing Zoom, Zoom, Zoom A View by Any Other Name Degenerating and Regenerating 84 84 85 87 89 91 PART 2: LET THERE BE LINES 93 CHAPTER 6: Along the Straight and Narrow 95 Drawing for Success 96 Introducing the Straight-Line Drawing Commands 97 Drawing Lines and Polylines 98 Toeing the line 100 Connecting the lines with polyline 100 Squaring Off with Rectangles .105 Choosing Sides with POLygon 106 CHAPTER 7: vi Dangerous Curves Ahead 109 Throwing Curves Going Full Circle Arc-y-ology Solar Ellipses 109 110 112 114 AutoCAD For Dummies www.TechnicalBooksPdf.com CHAPTER 8: CHAPTER 9: Splines: Sketchy, Sinuous Curves Donuts: Circles with a Difference Revision Clouds on the Horizon Scoring Points 115 117 118 120 Preciseliness Is Next to CADliness 123 Controlling Precision Understanding the AutoCAD Coordinate Systems Keyboard capers: Coordinate input Introducing user coordinate systems Drawing by numbers Grabbing an Object and Making It Snappy Grabbing points with object snap overrides Snap goes the cursor Running with object snaps Other Practical Precision Procedures 124 127 127 128 129 131 132 134 135 137 Manage Your Properties 141 Using Properties with Objects Using the ByLayer approach Changing properties Working with Layers Accumulating properties Creating new layers Manipulating layers Scaling an object’s linetype Using Named Objects Using AutoCAD DesignCenter 142 142 144 146 148 149 156 158 159 161 Grabbing Onto Object Selection 163 Commanding and Selecting Command-first editing Selection-first editing Direct-object manipulation Choosing an editing style Selecting Objects One-by-one selection Selection boxes left and right Tying up object selection Perfecting Selecting AutoCAD Groupies Object Selection: Now You See It . 164 164 164 164 165 166 167 167 169 170 173 173 CHAPTER 10: Table of Contents www.TechnicalBooksPdf.com vii CHAPTER 11: CHAPTER 12: Edit for Credit 175 Assembling Your AutoCAD Toolkit The Big Three: Move, COpy, and Stretch Base points and displacements Move COpy Copy between drawings Stretch More Manipulations Mirror, mirror on the monitor ROtate SCale -ARray Offset Slicing, Dicing, and Splicing TRim and EXtend BReak Fillet, CHAmfer, and BLEND Join Other editing commands Getting a Grip When Editing Goes Bad Dare to Compare 175 178 178 180 181 182 182 186 186 188 189 190 191 193 193 195 196 199 201 202 204 206 Planning for Paper 207 Setting Up a Layout in Paper Space 210 The layout two-step 210 Put it on my tabs 212 Any Old Viewport in a Layout 213 Up and down the detail viewport scales 214 Keeping track of where you’re at .216 Practice Makes Perfect 217 Clever Paper Space Tricks 217 PART 3: IF DRAWINGS COULD TALK 219 Text with Character 221 Getting Ready to Write Creating Simply Stylish Text Font follies Get in style Taking Your Text to New Heights Plotted text height Calculating non-annotative AutoCAD text height 222 224 225 226 228 228 228 CHAPTER 13: viii AutoCAD For Dummies www.TechnicalBooksPdf.com hatches InfoCenter, 21–22 adding style to, 290–291 Inherit Properties button, 290 creating, 281–285, 291–292 In-Line Text Editor, 237–238 defined, 281 In-Place Text Editor, 233, 234, 235, 238–239, 241 editing, 293–294 Inscribed option, POLygon command, 48, 107 Hatch tab, 285–287 Insert dialog box, 332–333 patterns, 292–293 Insert Field option, In-Line Text Editor, 237–238 placing on layers, 284–285 Insert tab, Ribbon, 26 scaling, 288–289 inserting blocks, 326, 332–336 HELIX command, 448–449 INSertion mode, Object Snap, 134 Help system, 21, 35–36 insertion point attribute definition, 338 hexagon, drawing, 47–48 blocks, 329, 334 hidden lines, base view, 464 Hidden visual style, 436 installation, AutoCAD, 25 Hide All button, Geometric panel, 383 interface, AutoCAD See also specific interface elements Hide Paperspace Objects option, Plot dialog box, 320 overview, 17 parts of, 19–21 HIDEOBJECTS command, 158, 174 History tab, DesignCenter, 162 Internet features Home tab, Ribbon, 25, 422 See also specific commands cloud services, 407–408, 411–413 Home view, 434, 444, 445 FTP, 407 ETRANSMIT command, 405–407 horizontal dimension, 255 mobile devices, 413–414 horizontal dimensional constraint, 391, 397 overview, 403–404 horizontal geometric constraint, 383, 385–386, 394 receiving files, 404, 408 Reference Manager, 408–410 host drawing, 355 See also external reference files securing files, 410 sending files, 404–408 hotspot, 472 HP Print and Scan Doctor utility, 321 I icons, explained, IES files, 472 imperial units, 38, 39, 62 implied windowing, 167 Import command, 22 Import PDF dialog box, 487, 488 in-canvas viewport control, 442, 443 Infer Linetypes from Collinear Dashes box, Import PDF dialog box, 488 inferred constraints, 125, 389 types of files DWG files may reference, 404–405 Internet resources for AutoCAD, 495–498 INtersect command, 458 INTersection mode, Object Snap, 134 Inventor, 334, 467–469 ISOLATEobjects command, 158, 174 isolating layers, 157 isometric projections, 464, 465 isometric views, 431–432, 446–447, 465 J Join command, 199–201 justification, text, 230 Index 517 K layouts, paper space, 27, 34, 208–213, 305–307 keyboard shortcuts, 33–34, 182 LEADER command, 250 keyboard use, 30–34 See also command line leader landing, 251 leaders L defined, 221 language packs, 507 lassoing objects, 169–170 Last command-first selection option, 170 launching AutoCAD, 10–11 LAyer command, 43–44, 279 LAYer ISOlate (LAYISO) command, 157 Layer Properties Manager palette, 44–45, 47, 149–154 layer states, 157 layers applying materials to, in 3D models, 477 array types, and interaction with, 347 creating, 43–45, 149–156 dimensions on, 279 filters, 157 freezing, 60, 156, 218 inserting blocks on, 332 isolating, 157 linetype scale, 158–159 locked, 156, 157 manipulating, 156–158 object properties, 148–149 organizing objects on, 97 overview, 43, 146–148 placing hatches on, 284–285 properties of, in blocks, 328–329 revision cloud, 119 standards for, 146 VISRETAIN system variable, 504 xref files, 358 Layers and Properties control lists, 200 Layers panel, Home tab, 47, 60 See also specific commands LAYISO (LAYer ISOlate) command, 157 LAYLOCKFADECTL system variable, 157 Layout tab, Ribbon, 27 layout tabs, 208–209, 212–213 518 AutoCAD For Dummies multiline, 250–252 length units, 63, 72 LENgthen command, 195 licensed text fonts, 406 lighting, in 3D models default, 470–471 overview, 73, 470 Sun Properties palette, 474 user-defined, 471–473 LIGHTINGUNITS system variable, 471 Lights in Model palette, 423, 473 Lights panel, Ribbon, 470, 471, 472 Limits command, 40, 87 Line command example of use, 13, 31–32, 46 overview, 97 versus PLine command, 98–100 3D objects, drawing, 448, 449 linear dimensional constraint, 391, 392–393, 394 linear units, 63, 72 lines, drawing with Line command, 98–100 overview, 95–97 with PLine command, 98–99, 100–105 POLygon command, 106–107 RECtang command, 105–106 straight-line drawing commands, 97–98 Lines tab, New/Modify Dimension Style dialog boxes, 269 linetypes loading, 154 overview, 148 scales, 75–76, 158–159 selecting, 151–152 units used for, 64 lineweights, 148, 152, 312–316 LIst command, 131 LIVESECTION command, 468 Mobile features, 413–414 local user groups, AutoCAD, 497 Mode settings, Attribute Definition dialog box, 337 Lock Position check box, Attribute Definition dialog box, 337, 338 model geometry, 207 locked layers, 156, 157 locking viewport scale, 212 lofting objects, 452–453 M M2P mode, Object Snap, 135 Mac, AutoCAD for, 2–3 Macro Recorder, 506 Manage tab, Ribbon, 26 MATbrowser command, 475 Match Properties, 200, 287, 290 materials, in 3D models, 474–477 Materials Browser, 423, 474, 475, 476, 477 Materials Editor, 423, 475, 476 MBUTTONPAN system variable, 85 MEAsuregeom command, 131 MEASUREINIT system variable, 64, 267 MEASUREMENT system variable, 64 Medium Material Library, 475 MENUBAR system variable, 501 mesh surfaces, 418 Mesh tab, 3D Modeling workspace, 422 Microsoft Paint, 14 MicroStation DGN files, 344 MIDpoint mode, Object Snap, 134 MIRRHATCH system variable, 294 MIrror command, 49, 186–187, 294, 456 MIRROR3D command, 456 MIRRTEXT system variable, 187, 501 missing files, checking for, 408 MLeaDer command, 250–252 MLeaderAlign command, 252 MLeaderCollect command, 252 MLeaderEdit command, 252 mleaders (multiline leaders), 250–252 MLeaderStyle command, 252 MLine command, 103 MLStyle command, 103 model space defined, 207 drawing properties, 76–77 Grid mode, 73–75 layout, plotting, 296–300 overview, 34, 68 paper space, relation to, 207–208 paper space versus, 217 placing dimensions in, 262–263 scales, setting, 75–76 setting up, overview, 71 Snap mode, 73–75 snapping into, 218 telling apart from paper space, 216 units, setting, 72–73 viewpoints, 441 viewports, 441–446 modeless palettes, 335 Modify Dimension Style dialog box, 268, 268–271 Modify panel, Home tab, 175–177, 454 See also specific commands monochrome plots, 58, 297 Move command, 48, 178–181 Move setting, base view, 464 MREDO command, 205 mText command background masking, 237 bulleted and numbered lists, 238–240 columns, 240–241 Insert Field option, 237–238 modifying, 242 overview, 222, 233–237 Mtext Edit option, mText command, 242 MTJIGSTRING system variable, 504 multifunction grips, UCS icon, 429 multiline attributes, 326, 336 Multiline Editor button, Attribute Definition dialog box, 338 multiline leaders (mleaders), 250–252 multiline text See mText command Index 519 multilines, 103 Multiple Lines check box, Attribute Definition dialog box, 337–338 multiscale drawings, 273–275 MVSETUP command, 468 REVCLOUD command, 119 Zoom command, 88 object properties See also layers changing, 144–145 controlling, 142–145 defined, 141 N DesignCenter palette, 161–162 named objects, 159–160 named plot style tables (STB) files, 309 named plot styles, 308 named UCS, creating, 427–430 Named UCSs tab, UCS dialog box, 427, 429 named views, 89–91, 477–478 Navigate 2D panel, Ribbon View tab, 85 Navigate panel, Ribbon View tab, 85, 87–88 Navigation bar, 85–86 NCOPY command (Copy Nested Objects tool), 341 NEArest mode, Object Snap, 135 nested items, purging, 342 NET language, 507 NEW command, 22, 69, 70, 80 New Dimension Style dialog box, 268–271 New Table Style dialog box, 246–247 New View/Shot Properties dialog box, 89, 89–90, 477–478 No Path option, xrefs, 359, 361 NODe mode, Object Snap, 134 non-associative arrays, 190–191, 346–347 non-associative dimensions, 265, 500 non-continuous linetypes, 488 non-orthogonal lines, 254 non-system drivers, 301 noun-verb editing See selection-first editing nudging, 178 numbered lists, 238–240 NURBS (Non-Uniform Rational Bezier Spline) surfaces, 418 editing, 200 linetype scale, 158–159 named objects, 159–160 overview, 76, 141 useful, 148–149 object snap tracking, 125, 138–139, 425–426 object snaps (osnaps) deferred, 135 defined, 125 geometric constraint similarity to, 382 modes, 134–135 overrides, 125, 131, 132–134 overview, 55, 131, 140 running, 131, 135–137 three-dimensional, 425–426 using, 124–127 objects See also associative arrays; blocks; drawing process annotative, 222, 223–224, 242–245, 289, 326 applying materials to, in 3D models, 477 copying, 49 creating 3D, from 2D, 451–454 fading on locked layers, 157 moving, 48 organizing on layers, 97 selecting, 166–173 table, 245–249 3D, drawing, 448–449 visibility, 173–174 NURBS (Non-Uniform Rational B-Spline) curve, 115 Objects area, Block Definition dialog box, 330 O offset distance, 191 Object ARX language, 507 Object option 520 AutoCAD For Dummies OFFset command, 50–51, 103, 191–193 one-by-one selection, 167 online content, 5–6 online Help system, 36 OOPS command, 173, 204 open 2D objects P page setups, 317–318 extruding, 451–452 PAGESETUP command, 210 lofting, 452–453 palettes, 34, 335 See also specific palettes revolving, 454 panning sweeping, 453 command locations, 85–86 Open command, 22 defined, 83 Open Documents feature, 23 named views, 89–91 Open Drawings tab, DesignCenter, 162 overview, 51–52 Open in Block Editor check box, Block Definition dialog box, 330 in paper space, 214–215 Open option, xrefs, 362 with wheel mouse, 84–85 option keyword, 32 Options dialog box, 23, 80, 86, 165–166, 278 Options option, Hatch tab, 287 Options panel, Array tab, 353–354 orientation, base view, 463–464 Origin option, Hatch tab, 287 Ortho mode lines, drawing, 46, 48 overview, 137–138 polygons, drawing, 107 shortcuts, 125 stretching in, 183–184, 185 orthographic drawings, 461 Orthographic UCSs tab, UCS dialog box, 428 orthographic views, 431, 432, 446–447 osnaps (object snaps) deferred, 135 defined, 125 geometric constraint similarity to, 382 modes, 134–135 overrides, 125, 131, 132–134 overview, 55, 131, 140 running, 131, 135–137 three-dimensional, 425–426 using, 124–127 OSNAPZ system variable, 426, 502 Output tab, Ribbon, 26, 423 OVERKILL command, 201 Overlay mode, xrefs, 357–358 overrides, object snap, 125, 131, 132–134 regenerating drawings, 91–92 paper, drafting on, 65 paper space defined, 34 generating 2D drawings from 3D models, 463 layouts, 27, 34, 208–213, 305–307 overview, 68, 207–209 placing dimensions in, 262 telling apart from model space, 216 tips for, 217–218 viewports, 211–212, 213–216 paper text height, 228 paragraph text, 230 parallel geometric constraint, 382, 386 PARallel mode, Object Snap, 135 parallel projection, 431–432, 433 Parameters Manager palette, 396–398 Parameters tab, Block Authoring Palettes, 372, 375 parametric drawing See also dimensional constraints; geometric constraints compatibility issues, 490 defined, 380 design intent, maintaining, 378–381 overview, 371, 377–378 speed of, 377–378, 401–402 parametric modeling, 467–469 parent drawing, 335 password protection, 410 PASTEBLOCK command, 182 PASTECLIP command, 182 Index 521 path arrays, 347, 351–353 printing versus, 296 path settings, xrefs, 357, 359–361, 362 raster images, 483 Pattern panel, Hatch Creation tab, 53, 286 scaling for, 303–305 patterns, hatch, 286, 292–293 troubleshooting, 321–322 PDF (Portable Document Format) format plotting conventions, 321 attaching as reference files, 367–369 point filters, 425 editing files in, 487–489 point light, 472, 473 exporting to, 485 point objects, 120–122 overview, 344 Point Style dialog box, 121 saving files in, 410 polar arrays, 347, 350–351 PEdit command, 99, 116, 202 Polar tracking mode, 125, 139, 183–184 perpendicular geometric constraint, 383, 386 PolarSnap mode, 125, 139 PERpendicular mode, Object Snap, 134, 135 POLygon command, 47–48, 97, 106–107 perspective projection, 433 Polygonal option, REVCLOUD command, 119 PERSPECTIVE system variable, 432 polylines, drawing, 97, 98–99, 100–105 perspective views, 431–432 Portable Document Format (PDF) format Perspective with Ortho Faces option, ViewCube, 445 attaching as reference files, 367–369 photometric light, 471 editing files in, 487–489 Pick Point button, Block Definition dialog box, 329 exporting to, 485 PICKBOX system variable, 502 overview, 344 pixels, 14–15 plan view, 432, 447 saving files in, 410 precision PLine command, 97, 98–99, 100–105, 103, 449 accuracy versus, 126 PLINEREVERSEWIDTHS system variable, 201 additional techniques, 137–140 Plot dialog box See plotting controlling, 124–127 Plot Scale Confirm dialog box, 59 object snaps, 131–137 plot style tables, 58, 299, 309–311, 316–317 overview, 123 plot styles, 148, 153, 307–312 when drawing, 96 plotted text height, 228–229 world coordinate system, 127–131 presets, render, 479 plotting in color, 316–317 PRESSPULL command, 452 configuring printers, 301–303 Previous command-first selection option, 170 defined, 296 Previous option, Zoom command, 88 layers, 153 Primary Units tab, New/Modify Dimension Style dialog boxes, 271 lineweights, 312–316 model space layout, 296–300 overview, 26, 37, 57–60, 295–296 page setups, 317–318 paper space layout, 305–307 Plot dialog box options, 318–321 plot styles, 307–312 previewing, 303 522 AutoCAD For Dummies primitive solids, 450, 458 Print command, 23 printer drivers, 301 Printer/Plotter option, Plot dialog box, 319 printers configuring, 301–303 3D, 461–462, 486 printing, 57, 296 See also plotting RECtang command, 50, 97, 105–106, 353 programming languages, supported, 506 rectangular arrays, 345–346, 347–350 projection modes, 433 Rectangular button, Layout Viewports panel, 214 Properties option Rectangular option, REVCLOUD command, 119 Hatch tab, 286–287 redefinition, block, 329, 333 mText command, 242 Redo button, Quick Access menu, 205 Properties palette, 144–145, 200, 399–400, 473 REDO command, 205 property filters, 157 Redundant Array of Independent Disks (RAID) technology, 412 Publish command, 22 PUrge command, 160, 341–342 Reference Manager, 408–410 Q REgenAll command, 92 QDIM command, 260 qLEader command, 250 QNEW (Quick NEW) command, 80 QUAdrant mode, Object Snap, 134 Quick Access toolbar, 19, 21, 57 Quick Properties option, Text command, 242 Quick Properties palette, 145, 200, 294 R radial dimensional constraint, 391 Radians units, 64 REgen command, 92 regenerating drawings, 91–92 REGENMODE system variable, 92 relative Cartesian coordinates, 127–128, 129, 424 Relative Path option, xrefs, 357, 359–361 relative polar coordinates, 128, 129, 424 Reload option, xrefs, 361 Remember icon, explained, REMEMBERFOLDERS system variable, 502–503 render presets, 479 Render tab, 3D Modeling workspace, 422, 423 rendering backgrounds, 477–478 Radius option, Circle command, 110 lighting, 470–474 RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) technology, 412 overview, 437, 469–470 raster images materials, 474–477 process of, 479 attaching, 365–366 Replace Item option, Array tab, 354 defined, 14 Reset Array option, Array tab, 354 exporting files as, 482–483 Retain radio button, Block Definition dialog box, 331 managing, 366–367 overview, 344, 364–365 RAY command, 98 Realistic visual style, 436 Realtime option, Zoom command, 88 real-time panning, 84 receiving files, 404, 408 Recent Blocks button, preview panel, 332 REVCLOUD command, 110, 118–120 REVERSE command, 201 revision clouds, 118–120 revolving objects, 454 Rewind tool, SteeringWheels, 435 Ribbon See also specific tabs and options customizing, 25, 506, 508 Recent Documents feature, 23, 43 overview, 19, 24–25 Recognize SHX Text button, Ribbon Insert tab, 489 3D Modeling workspace, 422–423 tabs on, 25–27 Index 523 right-clicking, 33, 35, 135, 276 security features, 410, 412–413 rollover highlighting, 171 segments, line, 97 ROLLOVERTIPS system variable, 503 Select Color dialog box, 44–45, 150–151 ROtate command, 188–189 Select Linetype dialog box, 151–152 rotation angle, block, 334 Select Objects button, Block Definition dialog box, 329 Rotation option, ELipse command, 114 rotation parameter, dynamic blocks, 375 Rows panel, Array Creation contextual tab, 350 rule-based drawing See parametric drawing running object snaps, 131, 135–137 selection object, 166–173 subobject, 454–455 selection preview, 171 selection sets, 167 S Save As command, 22, 491 Save command, 22 Save Drawing As dialog box, 42, 77–78 Save Layout as a Drawing option, 484 SAVETIME system variable, 499 scale of 2D drawings made from 3D models, changing, 469 base view, 464 block, 334 dimensions for output, 272–275 hatches, 288–289 linetype, 75–76, 158–159 paper space viewport, 214–216 for plotting, 303–305 setting, 65–68, 75–76 SCale command, 67, 189–190 scale factor, 228 Scale Uniformly check box, Block Definition dialog box, 330 SCALELISTEDIT command, 212 Scientific units, 63 screening, 307 scrolling, 86 Search feature, 23–24 section views, 469 SECTIONPLANE command, 468 SECTIONPLANEJOG command, 468 SECTIONPLANETOBLOCK command, 468 524 Select Template dialog box, 69, 70 AutoCAD For Dummies selection window, 167–169 selection-first editing, 164 self-scaling annotations, 490 sending files cloud services, 407–408, 411 ETRANSMIT command, 405–407 FTP, 407 overview, 404 types of files DWG files may reference, 404–405 servers, FTP, 407 Settings tab, UCS dialog box, 428 setup, drawing borders, 68–69 default drawing templates, 69–71 drawing properties, 76–77 Grid mode, 73–75 model space, 71–77 overview, 61–62 paper, thinking about, 68 saving drawings as templates, 77–81 scales, 65–68, 75–76 Snap mode, 73–75 units, 62–64, 72–73 Shaded Viewport options, Plot dialog box, 320 Shaded visual style, 436 Shaded with Edges visual style, 436 Shades of Gray visual style, 436 shadows, in 3D models, 473 sheet sets, 505 shortcut icons, modifying, 508 style families, 268 Show All button styles Dimensional panel, 393 dimension, 263–272 Geometric panel, 383 for hatches, 290–291 Show/Hide button, Geometric panel, 383 plot, 307–312 SHX fonts, 225, 489 table, 246–247 signatures, digital, 410 text, 222, 224–228 single-line text, 230 subobjects, of 3D objects, 419, 454–455 Sketchy visual style, 436 SUbtract command, 458 SLice command, 459 Sun Properties palette, 423, 474 smooth geometric constraint, 383 surface 3D models, 418, 419, 440, 448 Snap and Grid tab, Drafting Settings dialog box, 41, 74 Surface tab, 3D Modeling workspace, 422 Snap mode, 41, 73–75, 125, 137, 140 SV$ file type, 205 SOLDRAW command, 468 solid 3D models creating 3D objects from 2D objects, 451–454 Surveyor’s Units, 64 sweeping objects, 453 symbol drawings, developing library of, 331 editing, 457–459 Symbols and Arrows tab, New/Modify Dimension Style dialog boxes, 269 modifying 3D objects, 454–459 symmetric geometric constraint, 383 overview, 418–419, 440 system printers, 301 selecting additional solids, 469 system variables, 264, 499, 499–500 See also specific system variables solid primitives, 449–450 solid fill, 292 Solid tab, 3D Modeling workspace, 422 SOLPROF command, 468 SOLVIEW command, 468 space tabs, 20 spacebar, 12, 34, 41 spherical coordinates, 425 SPLine command, 110, 115–117, 448 SPLINEDIT command, 115, 116 spotlight, 472, 473 square brackets, 33 Start screen, 18 static columns, 240–241 status bar, 20, 28, 38–39, 56–57, 124–125 See also specific status bar tools STB (named plot style tables) files, 309 SteeringWheels, 434–435 STereoLithography (STL) file format, 486 Stretch command, 54–57, 178–179, 182–186, 388, 392 systems of measure, 62 T Table Cell Format dialog box, 246 TABLE command, 247 Table Style dialog box, 246, 247 tables compatibility issues, 490 editing, 247–249 overview, 245–246 styles, 246–247 TABLESTYLE command, 246 tabs See also specific Ribbon tabs file, 19 on Ribbon, 25–27 tangent constraint, 379, 383 TANgent mode, Object Snap, 135 Tangent-Tangent-Radius (Ttr) option, Circle command, 111 Index 525 Tangent-Tangent-Tangent option, Circle command, 111 thawing layers, 156 Technical Stuff icon, explained, Point option, UCS command, 427 templates for 3D modeling, 441–446 creating drawings from, 39–43 default drawing, 69–71 defined, 70 in paper space, 218 saving drawings as, 77–81 for text styles, 225 3D, 421 temporary overrides, 140 Test Block tool, 373 text See also mText command adding to drawing, 222 annotative objects, 222, 223–224, 242–245 dimensions, 277–278 drawing scale, 228–229 entering, 230 justification, 230 MIRRTEXT system variable, 501 multiline leaders, 250–252 overview, 221–222 scales, setting, 75–76 spell checking, 242 stretching, 186 styles, 222, 224–228 tables, 245–249 TEXT command, 230–233 TEXT command, 222, 230–233 text height, 224 text objects, geometric constraints for, 383 Text panel, Annotate tab, 226 Text Settings area, Attribute Definition dialog box, 338 Text Style dialog box, 224, 225, 226–228 text styles, 222, 224–228 Text tab, New/Modify Dimension Style dialog boxes, 270 text window, displaying, 32 TEXTTOFRONT command, 237, 277 526 AutoCAD For Dummies thickness property, 2D objects, 451 3D Basics workspace, 420 3D modeling aligning objects, 456 backgrounds, 477–478 compatibility issues, 490 coordinates, specifying, 423–426 creating 3D objects from 2D objects, 451–454 drawing 3D objects, 448–449 editing solids, 457–459 generating 2D drawings from, 462–469 gizmos, working with, 455–456 hardware acceleration, 420–421 high points, 467 Inventor files, working with, 467–469 lighting, 470–474 materials, 474–477 MIrror command, 456 MIRROR3D command, 456 model space viewports, 441–446 modeling types, 418–419, 440 modification techniques, 454–459 object snaps and object snap tracking, 425–426 older commands, 468 overview, 417–418, 439–440, 461–462 point filters, 425 rendering, 437, 469–470, 479 solid, 449–450 subobject selection, 454–455 3DARRAY command, 457 types of 3D models, 418–419 user coordinate system, managing, 426–431 viewing capabilities, 431–435 viewpoints, 441, 446–447 visual styles, 435–437 3D modeling formats, 369 3D Modeling workspace, 419–420, 421–423, 443, 462 3D Object Snap, 125, 425 3D printers, 461–462, 486 3DALign command, 456 3DARRAY command, 457 Unload option raster images, 367 xrefs, 361 3DMOVE command, 455 updates, to book, 3DOrbit command, 432–433 Use Overall Scale Of setting, 270 3DPOLY command, 448, 449 user coordinate system (UCS), 128–129, 426– 431, 458 3DROTATE command, 455 3DSCALE command, 455 3-Point (3P) option, Circle command, 111 tiled viewport, 442 Tip icon, explained, TOLerance command, 271 Tool Palettes, 335, 506 toolsets, 506 tooltips, 27, 38, 503 user folder, finding, 79 user groups, AutoCAD, 497–498 user interface, 17, 19–21 See also specific interface elements user-defined lighting, in 3D models, 470, 471–473 V Value column, Parameters Manager palette, 396 TOOLTIPS system variable, 503 variable height, 227 Tour Building wheel, 434 VBA language, 507 translation issues, between file formats, 489–490 vector files, 14–15, 344, 364, 482, 483–485 transmittal setups, 406 verb-noun editing See command-first editing transparency, object property, 148, 153 vertical dimension, 255 TRim command, 193–195 vertical dimensional constraint, 391, 398 troubleshooting vertical geometric constraint, 383, 386, 394 editing, 204–205 vertices, 3D objects, 419 plotting, 321–322 View command, 89 TrueType font, 225, 408 View Manager dialog box, 89–90, 91, 477–478 Ttr (Tangent-Tangent-Radius) option, Circle command, 111 View Object wheel, 434 2D Wireframe visual style, 435, 447 View tab, Ribbon, 26, 85, 423, 446 2-Point (2P) option, Circle command, 111 Typical installation, 25 U U command, 31, 38, 205 UCS dialog box, 426, 427–428, 429 UCS icon, 216, 420, 426, 428–429 UCSDETECT command, 458 underlays, DWF/PDF, 368–369 UNDO command, 38, 204–205 UNIon command, 458 UNISOLATEobjects command, 174 units, setting, 62–64, 72–73 View option, UCS command, 427 VIEWBASE command, 463, 467, 468, 469 ViewCube, 86, 431, 433–434, 444–445, 446 VIEWDETAIL command, 469 viewing 2D drawings, 463–464 3D capabilities, 431–435 Viewpoint Presets dialog box, 447 viewpoints, model space, 441, 446–447 viewports model space, 441–446 paper space, 211–212, 213–216, 463 Viewports dialog box, 443, 444 VIEWPROJ command, 464, 467 Index 527 VIEWRES command, 92 WPolygon command-first selection option, 170 views WriteBlock (WBLOCK) command, 331 defined, 84 named, 89–91, 477–478 2D, generated from 3D models, 463–466, 467–469 VIEWSECTION command, 469 visibility dynamic blocks, 370–373, 376 layer, 156 object, 173–174 VISRETAIN system variable, 504 visual styles, 435–437, 447 Visual Styles Manager palette, 423, 435–437 X XLine command, 98 XML Paper Specification (XPS) format, 485 X-ray visual style, 436 xref (external reference) files advantages of, 355–356 applications for, 363 attaching, 356–358 versus blocks, 355, 363 clipping, 362 VPORTS command, 275, 444 editing, 358–359 W managing, 361–362 Warning icon, explained, WBLOCK (WriteBlock) command, 331 WCS (world coordinate system), 127–131, 426–427 weblight, 472, 473 wheel mouse, zooming and panning with, 52, 84–85 width, polyline, 99, 102 Window command-first selection option, 170 window lasso, 169 window object selection, 167 Window option, Zoom command, 88 window selection box, 168 Windows Meta File (WMF), 483–485 Windows Registry, system variables saved in, 500 wireframe 3D models, 418, 440, 449 Wireframe visual style, 436 WMFOUT command, 484 Workspace Switching button, 27, 421 workspaces, 21, 40 world coordinate system (WCS), 127–131, 426–427 World option, UCS command, 427 528 AutoCAD For Dummies layers, 358 overview, 343–344, 354–355 path settings, 359–361 tips for use, 327, 328 VISRETAIN system variable, 504 Y YouTube Autodesk channel, 496 Z Z coordinate, 424 zero-width polylines, 102 Zoom All command, 52, 87–88 Zoom command, 41, 87–88, 215 zooming command locations, 85–86 named views, 89–91 options for, 87–88 overview, 51–52, 83–84 in paper space, 214–215 regenerating drawings, 91–92 with wheel mouse, 84–85 About the Author Bill Fane is a recovering doorknob designer He was a product engineer and then product engineering manager for Weiser Lock in Vancouver, Canada, for 27 years and holds 12 U.S patents He has been using AutoCAD for design work since Version 2.17g (1986) and Inventor since version 1.0 beta (1996) He is a retired professional engineer and an Autodesk Authorized Training Center (ATC) certified instructor He began teaching mechanical design in 1996 at the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) in Vancouver, including such courses as AutoCAD, Mechanical Desktop, Inventor, SolidWorks, machine design, term projects, manufacturing processes, and design procedures His son Trevor was one of his students Bill retired from this position in 2008 He lectured on a wide range of AutoCAD and Inventor subjects at Autodesk University from 1995 to 2012, and at Destination Desktop from 2003 to 2009 He was the AUGI CAD Camp National Team instructor for the manufacturing track between 2008 and 2011 He has written over 220 “The Learning Curve” columns for CADalyst magazine since 1986 and claims to be a close personal friend of Captain LearnCurve He has also written engineering software product reviews for CADalyst, Design Product News, and Machine Design In his spare time he skis, water-skis, scuba dives, sails a Hobie Cat, drives his ’37 Rolls-Royce limousine or his wife’s ’89 Bentley Turbo R, travels extensively with his wife, and plays with his grandchildren Dedication Last time around I dedicated that edition to Bev, my dear wife of 52 years, and to our grandchildren, Rebecca, Bryan, and Brodie Our daughter Joanne and her husband Rod then complained that they had been left out, so they are hereby included Our latest grandson, Jack, was born tomorrow It was July 13 in Vancouver but July 14 in Adelaide, Australia, where our son Trevor and wife Jenn were living at the time Author’s Acknowledgments At Wiley, Acquisitions Editor Steven Hayes was instrumental in getting this edition underway It was a pleasure to work with project editor Susan Pink, who made sure all the i’s were crossed and all the t’s were dotted (or something like that) And thanks, finally, to Ralph Grabowski, who did his usual sterling job of tech editing Publisher’s Acknowledgments Acquisitions Editor: Steven Hayes Editorial Assistant: Matthew Lowe Project Editor: Susan Pink Sr Editorial Assistant: Cherie Case Copy Editor: Susan Pink Production Editor: Siddique Shaik Technical Editor: Ralph Grabowski Cover Image: © Socha/Getty Images Proofreader: Debbye Butler WILEY END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT Go to www.wiley.com/go/eula to access Wiley’s ebook EULA ...www.TechnicalBooksPdf.com AutoCAD ® 18th Edition by Bill Fane www.TechnicalBooksPdf.com AutoCAD For Dummies®, 18th Edition Published by: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street,... GETTING STARTED WITH AUTOCAD CHAPTER 1: Introducing AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT Launching AutoCAD Drawing in AutoCAD ... encounter a few of the billions and billions of drawings that were created using older methods I also mention the important differences between AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT. In particular, AutoCAD LT has